University of Akron: We’re not Closing Multicultural Center

by Diverse Staff

The University of Akron joined a growing list of colleges and universities exercising severe fiscal belt-tightening in the new budget year when it announced this week that 213 staffers were losing their jobs. The university is attempting to offset a reported $40 million deficit.

UVa Grads Sue Rolling Stone Over Retracted Campus Rape Story

by Alan Suderman, Associated Press

Three University of Virginia graduates and members of a fraternity who were portrayed in a debunked account of a gang rape in a retracted Rolling Stone magazine story filed a lawsuit against the publication and the article’s author, court records show.

Feds Accuse Philadelphia Congressman Fattah of Corruption

by Maryclaire Dale, Associated Press

U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah paid off a campaign loan with charitable donations and federal grants, funneled campaign money to pay down his son’s student loan debt and disguised a lobbyist’s bribe as payment for a car he never sold, prosecutors said Wednesday in announcing a racketeering indictment against the congressman.

BCCC in Good Standing; Sojourner-Douglass Loses Accreditation

Diverse Docket: Race Discrimination Suit Still on Table

by Eric Freedman

Borough of Manhattan Community College and the chair of its Business Management Department must continue defending a race discrimination suit by an adjunct professor of Nigerian descent, a federal judge has ruled.

Boston College Under Investigation Over Access for Disabled

by Associated Press

Boston College has become more difficult to navigate for people with disabilities in recent years, according to former and current students whose complaints have prompted an investigation into whether the school is violating accessibility laws.

Diverse Docket: Morehead State Unanimous Winner on Appeal

by Eric Freedman

Morehead State University didn’t violate First Amendment rights or commit disability discrimination when it denied tenure to an assistant professor of art history, a unanimous federal appeals panel has ruled.

Study Links Discrimination, Blacks’ Risk of Mental Disorders

by Catherine Morris

New research shows that African Americans and Caribbean Blacks who experience multiple types of discrimination are at a much greater risk for a variety of mental disorders, such as anxiety, depression and substance abuse.

Exchange Program Expands Horizons of African-American Males

14 members of three fraternities at The Ohio State University (OSU) traveled to China last month, where they choreographed a step show for Chinese students as part of a cross-cultural awareness program funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of State.

Injured Football Player to Return to Towson University

Educators Competing With Athletics for Low-income Students’ Focus

by Lydia Lum

Workshop panelist Nathan Weigl, a doctoral student at Appalachian State University, suggested that recruiting tactics of college coaches can be borrowed and adapted by GEAR UP practitioners and community partners.

Cal State Campuses Preserving Painful Piece of U.S. History

by Lydia Lum

The archives of 15 California State University campuses are collaborating to digitize about 10,000 documents and 100-plus oral histories connected to the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.

Engaging Latino Alumni: Basic Steps

This post is co-authored with Nelson Bowman III, the Executive Director of Development at Prairie View A&M University and is based on research for our forthcoming book Engaging Diverse College Alumni: The Essential Guide to Fundraising (Routledge, 2013).

Latinos are the fastest-growing minority group in the nation. Currently, they make up 16.3 percent (50.5 million) of the population and have $350 billion in buying power. Within the realm of higher education, Latinos make up 24 percent of the total student demographic and they have been growing at a rate of 546 percent over the last 25 years.

Although often overlooked by those studying and working within the confines of mainstream philanthropy, in fact, 63 percent of Latino households give to charity. Latinos have a long history of philanthropy, which is often based on a deep belief in God, an obligation to family and friends and deep knowledge of the causes to which they give. Although there are differences among the various Latino subgroups, there are commonalities that cut across these groups as well.

Overall, Latinos prefer hands-on solicitation and cultivation from someone highly respected within their communities. They tend to give funds for emergency assistance, education and to those in their country of origin. Education, in particular, is a ripe area in terms of giving for Latinos, given their increased participation. They are specifically interested in scholarships, organizations that support the treatment of immigrants and artistic and cultural education for youth.

In terms of engaging Latino alumni, many Latino graduates do not give back financially because they do not receive regular communication from their alma mater, especially communications that speak to their interests and cultural references. In addition, Latinos volunteer at a lower rate for alumni events, but when asked why, they noted that they are not asked to help. This lack of a meaningful exchange between Latino alumni and their alma maters, especially over a period of time, leads them to feel disconnected.

As college fundraisers, it is important to be mindful that attempting to contact and engage all Latino alumni is neither possible nor realistic. However, identifying prominent alumni that are established in communities where there is a substantial alumni presence is a great starting point. From there, fundraisers can begin to involve these individuals in discussions with the purpose of sharing the university’s goal of engaging more alumni of color. Fundraisers might also want to request the assistance of prominent alumni in spurring the interest of others. These efforts alone can stimulate a tremendous amount of increased participation among Latino alumni.

Older Men, Minorities Report Lower Rates of Treatment for Depression LOS ANGELESOlder men, African Americans and Latinos with clinical depression reported significantly lower rates of treatment than other participants surveyed in a national study led by UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute researchers. Overall, less than one in three depressed older adults studied had received potentially effective treatment […]

Stanford Under Federal Investigation For DiscriminationSTANFORD, Calif. — Stanford University is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor for potential violation of federal affirmative action law and gender discrimination.The federal investigation was prompted, in part, by statements made by the university’s outgoing provost, Condoleezza Rice who has repeatedly expressed reservations about the goals and […]